r I 

R-369 

T 

Hon. W. J. Elliott, Chief 

Texas Highway Patrol 

Texas Department of Public Safety 

Austin, Texas Opinion No. V-179 

Re: The applicability of Section (c) of Article 6686, 

V.C.S., to an. intransit 

operator or carrier who 

is not a dealer. 

Dear Sir: 

Your letter of April 14, 1947, requesting an o,pinion reads 

as follows: 

“An intransit operator, having complied,with the 

second section of B, Article 6686, is arrested for not 

having affixed to the windshield a sticker not less 

than three inches in diameter, stating that such vehicle has been driven or towed from point of manufacture, as outlined in Section C of Article 6686. 

“Section B of this Article provides that an intransit operator shall pay $50.00 for the first such 

registration fee and $3.00 thereafter for each number; and Section C provides that every motor vehicle 

driven or towed from outside this State for the purpose of sale within this State shall have this windshield sticker affixed. 

“We request an Opinion as to whether the intransit operator, bringing such vehicles into this 

State, operating as a transport company for the sole 

purpose of bringing these vehicles from the manufacturer to the dealer, is required to have the sticker 

affixed showing ,that the car has been towed, as required in Section C of this Article; or whether this 

particular Article is directed at the dealer to whom 

these cars are to be delivered and who presumably 

will later sell them.” 

Supplemental facts verbally supplied by you subsequent 

to the date of your written request are to the effect that the intransit 
3% Hon. W. J. Elliott - Page 2 Opinion No. V-179 

operator in question is not a dealer as that term is defined by Article 6686, V.C.S., but on the contrary, is a co-on carrier by 

motor vehicle in interstate commerce, and is presently operating 

under the jurisdiction of the Interstate Commerce Commission 

pursuant to authority granted by that body authorizing the transportation of motor vehicles in interstate co-exe by the “drivea-way” and “towing” methods. The motor vehicles in question 

were driven and towed by the intransit operator from the place of 

manufacture outside the State of Texas, and delivered to a dealer 

in the State of Texas. You have also stated that we are ~to assume 

that the intransit operator in question has. complied. with any and 

all requirements of the Railroad Commission of Texas under then 

provisions of Article 911b, V.C.S. 

The question presented is whether or not the provisions 

of Section(c) of Article 6686, V.C.S., are applicable to an intransit 

carrier of motor vehicles by the *drive-a-way* and “towing” methods, and must be complied with in order to lawfully drive such motor vehicles over the public highways of this State in rendering ~a 

common or contract carrier delivery service by means of ,such 

methods. 

Article 6686, Vernon’s Civil Statutes, provides in party 

as follows: 

-(&Any 

i 

manufacturer of or dealer in motor 

vehicles~ in this State may, instead of registering - 

each vehicle, he may wish to show or demonstrate 

on the public highways, apply for registration and 

. secure a .general distinguishing number which rnay~~~ ~. 

.be attached to any motor vehicle or motorcycle which 

he sends.~temporarily-upon the .road. . . . 

..‘(b) Each dealer holding a dealer’s license may 

issue temporary cardboard nurders.~,using such dealer’s number thereon . . . Any dealer, or manufacturer 

may use such cardboard license plate for the purpose. 

of operating or conveying a motor vehicle, trailer, ,or 

semi-trailer from his place of business in one part 

of the State to :his place .of business ‘in another part 

of the State, and for the ~purpose of operating nor sonveying a motor vehicle., traikr.. or semi-trailer from 

the point where it is unlo;aded to his places of business, 

and may also use such .Cardboard number in transporting a motor vehiclei trailer, ,or. semi-trailer from the 

State line to’his~place of-business. . . . 

“Any person, firm, or corporation engaged inthis 

State in the business of transporting and delivering ,by 
Hon. W.~ J. Elliott - Page 3 opini0at H0. v-179 

means id lh fulkmeuat method, t&e sa&dle meunt 

method, the tow bar mehbad, er l ny other cembination thereof, and uader their oWa power, new vehiclee from the manufacturer or my ether potnt et 

‘;. 2:; 

origin to any point of destknation w&thin the &ate ,0f 

".,!l.i;i /,,t,; ;.. ~.: :;*; 

Texas, shall make applicaMon to the St-&s Highway 

,.j* ; i :is+ ,‘..: .: “;: 

Commission for a drive-a-way in-kaneit license. 

This application for annual license shall be accompanied by a registration fee ai Pifw DsUars‘ ($50) . 

and shall contain such idcr~er the State Highway Coinmission msy’require. Upon the fiiiag ef the 

application and the payment of the fee,, the &ate Highl;. ,.~j:,. 

way Commission shall i,eeue ts each drive-r-way 

, 

operator a general distinguishin number, which nunber must be carried and displayed by eaqh mobr vehicle in like manner as is now provided by law for 

vehicles while being operated upon pub@ highways 

and such number shall remain 011 the vehicle or vehicles from the manufacturer, OCR any poi+t sf origin, 

to any point of ~deethation wfthfn the State of Texas. 

Additional number platee~berring ~cBe same distin-~ 

guiehing number d&Fred by any drive-a&way eperat0r 

may be secured from the,State Highway ~Cormniseion 

upon the payment of 0 fee of T&e+ Pellars ($3) for 

each set of additional license plates. Any person, firm 

or corporation engaging in the business 8s i drive-rway sperator of traneportily UJ delivering by means 

of full-anunt m0tho.d. tke s&&e m0unt~met&sd, the 

tow bar methodi or any combbatdan tbekaaf, and under their own power, new mater vehicles, who fails 

or refuses ta file or cause to be filed an applicati0n. 

as is required by law; and tb pay the fees therefor as 

the law requires, ,shall be found guilty ef violating the 

provisions of this Act and 

T 

on canviction be fined net 

lees than Fifty Dollars ($50 land mot m0re than Two 

Hundred Dollars ($200) and all the costs of Court. 

Each day so operating without securing-the license 

and plates as required herein eha&l aenstitute a~aeparate offense within the meaning ef this Act. The funds 

collected herein shall be paid i&e &a C%ener,al Revenue 

Fund of the State subject only to apptoprf&llon by the 

Legislature. 

“(c) Every mot0r vehicle that has been driven 

under its own power, or towed mei vm0m 

& *fit$&&re Wanufacwed eutside this State for the 

pu&ose of sale within th&s State, sh0U h0ve affixed to 

the windshield or front thereof in pLrin view e~Sie#kW 
. 

Hon. W. J. Elliett - Page 4 Opinion No. V-179 

qwwwfocturo,d. Such notice s&al1 remain on such 

i%lilCH tw& 

phasis 0:s) 

‘c sale thereof by the dealer. (Em- 

. . 1 , .” 

Article 6686, supra, was, with t&e exception of the above 

quoted second paragraph of Sectien (b), cnicted by Chapter 158, 

page 302, Acts of‘the Ferty-fifth Legislature, Re,gular Session, 

1937. The second paragraph ef said Se&on (b) wrs’added by Chapter 5, page 61,3, Acts of the Forty-sixth Legislature, Regular SesAm, 1939. 

~Prior to the amendment in 1939’as~ embraced in Chapter 

5, page 613, Acts of the Forty-sixth Legislatur~e, Regular Session, 

the act in questio,n, related only to dealers and manufacturers. Ne 

prevision was contained therein aMhoriaing~ the transportation and 

delivery of a motor ,vehicle by mean~sof driving or towing over the 

public highways ,of this State by one not + dealer or manufacturer 

without proper and separate registration of e~tch vehicle. 

We think it is clear from a~ reh&ng of the act as. ,a whole 

that a compliance With the provisions of Section (c) of Article 66g6, 

supro, is not a necessary prerequisite to the lawful movement by a 

dealer of a metor vehicle by driving ,a$ towing ever the public highways of this ~&ate from one, place .ef .b~ixsinesr k 8nother place of 

business. or frem oint of unloading totbe dealer’s place of business, or from the f tate line, . to the dealer?s,plrce of business in this 

State, or when driven everthe highwrys~,for the purpose of demenstration. 

Tbe evident intent and pnrpose of the Legislature as expressed in Se,ctien (c) of Article 66g6, suprr, is the protectien of 

the public in the purchase of a motor vehicle. Inthe e,vent a motor 

vehicle is driven under its own power, or towed by anether vehicle, 

from place of manufacture outside the State to the place of sale in 

the State, a prsspective purchaser is entitled to be apprised of such 

fact in advance of his purchase of the vehicle. In order te insure 

that the purchaser will have prior knowledge of such fact, the Legislature has required the affixing of a &i&et te the windshield of 

the motor vehicle stating such fact. It serves *spa notice to the 

prospective purchaser that the vehicle has been driven or towed 

from the place of manufacture to the place of sale in *is State. 

The express wording of Section (c), suprr, clearly indicates that the Legielatuee contemplrted,the affixing af the sticker 

to the windshield by the dealer afte,r,.the motor vehicle had been 

driven or towed te his place~of busines8,,and not befoew, or during, 

the time it was being driven or towed, This is, neceswrily true, 
c. , 

.Hon; W. J. Elliott - Page 5 ., Opinion No. V-179 

because the wording of Section..(c)i supra, is, in the past tense, and 

expressly relates to a motor vehicle *. . . that has been driverrunwer or towed” and the .langud bse reouired on the stickto the wii%&hield isto the elfect ‘. . . that such 

vehicle has been dr~iven or towed. . .” ,(Emphasis ours) 

,‘~ 

As previously’ebserved the Legislature in 1939’amendei 

Article 6686, V.C.8.. as it then existed (Ohsptet 158. page ~342, Acts 

of the Few-fifth Legislature, Regular Session, 1937), by enacting 

Chapter 5, page 613, Acts of the Forty-sixth Legislature, Regular 

Session, This amendment added a.new and separate pbragraph to 

Section (b) of sa@Article expressly authorizing perseas engaged 

in the business of delivering motor vehicles by.means of~the ‘drivea-way” and “towing? methods to secure a drive-a-w.ay transit license from the State,Highway Commission,-and receive a,.general 

distinguishing number, ta,,be displayed on each vehicle whiie being 

moved by. the “drive-a-way”: or :?towing* .metbed.in lieu of a separate registration of each vehicle a,s otherwise requiredby law. The 

reasen for Ws amendment ins tersely stated in the smerg(rrPCyclause 

of Chapter -5, supra,. wherein it is, stated:~ ., 

“The fa?t that~the.present law rtgulatesenl~ automobile dealers bringing new vehiules into the State, and 

the ~further,frct, that there are many motor vehiolt 6 

brought into the, State of Texas over its~ public higbw&yo 

by drive-a-w~ay operators who are not licensed under the 

present law, create an emergency. . . .I 

Under the facts stattd by you the intransit operator or carrier in question complied with all the previsions of Section (b) of 

Article 6686, suprr, relating to an intransit operator or carrier, but 

the did not comply with the previsions of Section (c) of Article 6686, 

supra. 

As has been previously. stated, Sactfen (c) of Artfcle 6686, 

supra, is applicable to dealers, and then only after the vehicle has 

come to rest at the dealer’s place of business, and is offered for sa& 

to the public. It has no application, and is not a prerequisite to the 

lawful driving and movement of a vehicle over the highways of this 

State;by a dealer complying with and coming within the provisions of 

Section (a) and the first paragraph of Section, (b) of ArtWe 6686, supra, Nothing is contained in Chapter 5, page 613, ACts of the Fortysix& Legislature, Re ular Sessta@, 1939, which is now the second 

paragraph of Section b), supra, f indicating in any manner that the 

Legislature intended or provided that the provisions of Sectisn (C), 

supra, should apply to an intransit operator and carrier. Section(c), 

supra, has remained unchanged since 1% origiaal enactment as a 

part of Chapter 158, page 302, Acts of the Forty-fifth Legislature, 

Regular Session, 1937; and it is our opinion that it does not apply to 
Hon. W. J. Elliott - Page 6 Opinion No. V-179 

an intransit operator and carrier such as described by you. 

It follows from what has been stated above that the arrest of the intransit operator for failure to have the stickers provided for in Section (c) of Article 6686, supra,~affixed to the windshields of the motor vehicles he was moving by the “drive-a-way” 

and “towing’ methods as a carrier for shire was improper and not 

authorized by law. 

SUMMARY 

The provisions of Section (c) d Article 6686, 

V.C.S., requiring each motor vehick that has been 

driven or towed from place of manufacture outside 

this State to place ef sale within the State to have a 

sticker affixed to the windshield stating such fact, 

apply to a dealer when offering the vehicle fer sale, 

but do not apply in any way to an intransit operator 

or carrier transporting and delivering motor vehicles by means of the drivel-a-way and towing methods under a drive-a-way intransit license provided 

for in Section (b) of Artic,le 6686, supra. 

Yours very truly, 

ATTMRNEY -NEPAL 4% TEXAS 

Assistant 

C19M:jt:sl